Hubs and spokes

Domestic flights in the USA are organised on the principle of hubs and spokes, like a bicycle wheel which has a hub at the centre and lots of spokes radiating out from it in all directions. One such hub is Houston in Texas: flights to over 100 other airports radiate out in different directions from there and half of these are non-stop flights.

For example, if you want to get from Miami to Los Angeles, you can catch a Continental Airlines flight from Fort Lauderdale (a few miles north of Miami and less hassle than Miami International Airport), change planes in Houston and fly on to Orange County (John Wayne Airport!) or Hollywood-Burbank Airport - both of which are much more relaxing and less crowded ways into Los Angeles than the appalling LAX (Los Angeles International Airport).

The hub and spoke network has made flights cheaper and means that even quite small places are connected to each other by a major airline or feeder service. Another advantage of the system is that connecting flights are to some extent guaranteed. If one incoming flight is up to one hour late, all the connecting flights (up to 30 or 40) will be held until it arrives. So if you're on a delayed flight, that's good news - but it's bad news for everyone else because they all have to wait for your plane to land.

From the point of view of overseas connections, many hubs also operate as entry points or 'gateways', where passengers flying in from another country can join the hub and spoke system.

The same type of system does operate in other parts of the world: for example, you can fly from one part of Europe to another via Frankfurt or Paris or Amsterdam or London, but the difference in other parts of the world is that the fares are not any cheaper so there's no special advantage.

Flying in to the USA it's advisable, if you possibly can, to avoid any major gateway, such as Los Angeles International, Miami and JFK (New York) in favour of a smaller gateway like Charlotte, Pittsburgh or Orlando.

b) Using the information in the text, complete each of these sentences. The first is done for you as an example:

1. If you want to get from Miami to Los Angeles, you can ...

fly from fort Lauderdale and change planes at Houston, Texas,...

2. If you want to avoid flying into LAX (Los Angeles International), you should …

3. If your flight is less than an hour late, your connecting flight will .„

4. II you fly between London and Vienna via Frankfurt or Paris, instead of direct, the fare ...

5. If you are entering the United States from abroad, you should ...

c) Маке а short written summary of the text.

Vocabulary practice

Ex 3. Match the following words from the text to make the right collocations:

the principle	in all directions
connected to each other	flights
hub and spoke	on the principle
to avoid	of hubs and spokes
radiating out from it	a continental flight
to be organised	by a major airline
to catch	late
to some extent	any major gateway
to be one hour	it arrives
non-stop	connections
be held until	guaranteed
overseas connections	network

Ex 4. Fill in the gaps with the appropriate words given below:

business, flight, full-fare, Advance, Open, fare, restricted.

Air Tickets

1. …………tickets cost you more. All First and …………class tickets are open. i.e. you can change your ………… times. ………… Economy tickets are usually open. Cheaper tickets are usually ………… , i.e. you can't change them. The best known-type is APEX ( ………… Purchase Excursion - a reduced airline or long-distance rail ………… that must be paid a specified number of days in advance). Often you have to stay overnight - something most business travelers won't want to do!

economy, excess, airlines, limit, departure, the plane, of charge, boarding pass, luggage, fasten.

Most ………… have at least 2 classes of travel: first class and ………… class which is cheaper. Each passenger of more than 2 years of age has a free ………… allowance. Generally this ………… is 20kg for economic class passenger and 30kg for first class passenger. ………… luggage must be paid for except for some articles that can be carried free ………… . Each passenger is given a ………… to be shown at ………… gate and again to the stewardess when boarding ………… . Watch the electric sign flashes when you are on board, when the "………… Seat Belts" sign goes on do it promptly and also obey the "No Smoking" signal.

Ex 5. Match the words and phrases (a-f) with the pictures (1-6).

a	single room		d	family room
b	double room		e	en suite room
c	twin room		f	dormitory

Grammar in use

Ex 6. Choose the correct future tense forms:

The plane ………… in half an hour (leave). 2. I ………… to Bristol tomorrow morning (am flying ). 3. They ………… my bags by 2 o’clock (check). 4. ………..you ………… to carry these bags yourself (carry)? 5. This time tomorrow I ………… across Atlantic (fly). 6. What day …………you ………… to leave for London (plan)? 7. I prefer economy. How much …………. it ………… (be)? 8. What is the London airport we ………… at? 9. Peter ………… in Moscow for 2 weeks by Friday (stay). 10. Yow many nights ………… you ………… for (stay)?

Ex 7. Translate the sentences unto English using correct future tense forms:

1. В это время завтра я буду лететь в самолете и читать газету. 2. Вы предпочитаете место у прохода или у окна? – У окна, пожалуйста. 3. Сэм собирается упаковывать свой чемодан через полчаса. 4. Во время полета будут подавать напитки и закуски? 5. В следующем апреле я буду работать в этой авиа компании уже 10 лет. 6. Самолет из Лондона приземляется в 5 часов вечера. 7. Сколько дней вы планируете пробыть в Москве? 8. На ваш рейс начнется посадка в 10.30 у выхода 24.

Listening and Speaking Practice

Ex 8. a) Read the conversation and then try to complete Nancy’s sentences.

b) After, listen to the recording and compare.

Nancy Lee is reserving an airline ticket from Los Angeles to Hong Kong. She has to make a lot of choices.

Travel Agent: Good morning. Can I help you?

Nancy Lee: ..................................................................

Travel Agent: Hong Kong? Would that be a round trip ticket or one-way?

Nancy Lee: .................................................................

Travel Agent: And for what date?

Nancy Lee: .................................................................

Travel Agent: Friday, the eighteenth? Yes. That’s fine. What about the return date? Do you have a fixed date in mind, or do you want an open ticket?

Nancy Lee: .......................................

Travel Agent: OK. Do you want a morning flight, or an afternoon flight?

Nancy Lee: .............................................................

Travel Agent: Well, there’s a Cathay Pacific flight at ten-thirty and a US Air one at twelve-thirty.

Nancy Lee: .................................................................

Travel Agent: OK. If you’ll just hold on a minute, I’ll check to see if there’s room. Yes, that's fine.

Nancy Lee: ................................................................:

Travel Agent: One thousand, eight hundred and seventy dollars.

Nancy Lee: ......................................

Travel Agent: Now, can I have your details, please?

c) Listen again to the conversation. This time the recording only has the voice of the Travel Agent. You take the part of Nancy Lee. Role play a similar conversation.

Ex 9. Discuss in pairs:

In which class do you usually fly?

What are the differences between the three main classes - First, Business and Economy?

What’s the difference between an open ticket and a restricted ticket?

Ex 10. a) Reserving accommodation

The receptionist (R) at the Hotel di Lago is taking a telephone reservation from a guest (G). Read the first part of the dialogue below. How many functions (a-f) does (R) do, and in what order?

a	Ask when the reservation is for.
b	Ask for the guest's name.
c	Give the price of the room.
d	Ask how many nights the guest is staying.
e	Give the name of the hotel.
f	Ask for a credit card number.

R Hello. Hotel di Lago. Can I help you?

G Hello. I’d like to make a reservation, please.

R Certainly. When is it for?

G For the weekend of 25th and 26th June.

R OK. How many nights is that for?

G Three nights - Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.

R Is that a single or a double room?

G A double room, please. With a bathroom.

R All our rooms have a bathroom. That's 120 euros per night, including tax.

G That’s fine.

R Would you like a smoking or non-smoking room?

G Non-smoking, please.

R OK, so that’s a double room, non-smoking, for three nights, from Friday 24th to Sunday 26th June.

G That’s right.

b) Complete the second part of the dialogue with the words in the box.

confirmed, credit card, expiry date, name

R Can I have your _________ , please?

G Yes, it’s Dowling, Anita Dowling.

R Sorry, can you spell that, please?

G Yes, it’s A-N-I-T-A, Dowling, D-O-W-L-I-N-G.

R OK. Can I take your _________ details?

G It’s a Visa card, number 4838 1867 3324 0089.

R Let me just check ... 4838 1867 3324 0089.

G That’s right.

R And what’s the _________?

G It’s 09/05 - September 2005.

R OK, that’s all ________ for you, Ms Dowling. We’ll look forward to seeing you on 24th lune.

G Thank you very much. Goodbye.

Ex 11. Work in pairs. Read the reservation form and role play a dialogue between a guest and a receptionist.

Hotel Dubrovnik	Customer reservations
Arrival date	16 March 18 March
Departure date	single, non-smoking
Room type	Tony Jamieson
Guest's name	(00 44) 020 8769 7883
Telephone no.	tdjamieson@totalize.co.uk
E-mail address	Single 125
Room rates	Double 150

Credit card details
Type of card (Visa, Amex, etc.)	Mastercard
Cardholder's name	Mr T. Jamieson
Card number	5432 6172 2351 9846
Expiry date	11/04

Writing

Ex 12. Find out what types of hotels and room prices there are in your area. In writing create a short guide for business visitors. Remember to include a budget option, mid-range option, and a luxury option if you can.

Tranlation

Ex 13. Translate this paragraph into Russian using the active vocabulary:

A scheduled flight is a normal, regular flight; a charter flight is a special flight taking a group of people, usually to the same holiday destination. Apex fares normally have to be booked a fixed number of days in advance and they оffer value for money. Budget fares are usually cheaper but may have restrictions (e.g. you can only travel on certain days) and are usually non-refundable [you can’t get your money back] or if you cancel, you may have to pay a cancellation fee. Some tickets allow a stopover [you may stay somewhere overnight before continuing to your destination]. All-in packages normally include accommodation and transfers [e.g. a bus or coach to and from your hotel].

Ex 14. Translate this paragraph into English using the active vocabulary:

Чем я могу вам помочь? Я хотел бы снять номер. Я хотел бы забронировать номер. К сожалению, на эти выходные у нас все забронировано. Осталось только несколько свободных номеров. Советуем в сезон бронировать номера заранее. Сколько дней вы будете проживать в отеле? На сколько ночей вы хотите снять номер? Хотите одноместный или двухместный номер? Двухместный. Сколько это стоит? 129 долларов в сутки. У вас есть более дешёвые номера?